Monday, December 10, 2012

1777AD Constitution of New York

Inspired by my continued reading of The Creation of the American Republic by Gordon Wood, I present two more state Constitutions from the time of the American Revolution -- New York & Massachusetts -- two documents that prove forerunners of our Federal Constitution.

After the wave of libertarian Constitutions in 1776AD, the American Revolutionaries, who had generally been wary of executive power, and assumed that a supreme legislature was the best hedge against tyranny, gradually came to the realization that elected legislatures can be just as dangerous to the common good as any king.

Hence, after 1776, the trend was for state Constitutions, and ultimately a Federal Constitution, that sought not so much to weaken the executive, but to balance the power between branches of government. A balanced government, it was reasoned, should be a restrained government.

The Framers (left to right): John Jay, Robert Livingston, and Gouverneur Morris.

The 1777AD Constitution of New York was notable in being, along with Massachusetts Constitution of 1780AD, a forerunner to the Constitution of the United States in its approach to a balance of power and an emphasis on checks on the legislature along with an active executive. This document was drafted by John Jay, Robert Livingston, and Gouverneur Morris.

Whereas the many tyrannical and oppressive usurpations of the King and
Parliament of Great Britain on the rights and liberties of the people of the
American colonies had reduced them to the necessity of introducing a government
by congresses and committees, as temporary expedients, and to exist no longer
than the grievances of the people should remain without redress; And whereas the
congress of the colony of New York did, on the thirty-first day of May now last
past, resolve as follows, viz:

"Whereas the present government of this colony, by congress and committees,
was instituted while the former government, under the Crown of Great Britain,
existed in full force, and was established for the sole purpose of opposing the
usurpation of the British Parliament, and was intended to expire on a
reconciliation with Great Britain, which it was then apprehended would soon take
place, but is now considered as remote and uncertain;

"And whereas many and great inconveniences attend the said mode of government
by congress and committees, as of necessity, in many instances, legislative,
judicial, and executive popovers have been vested therein, especially since the
dissolution of the former government by the abdication of the late governor and
the exclusion of this colony from the protection of the King of Great Britain;

"And whereas the Continental Congress did resolve as followeth, to wit:

" 'Whereas His Britannic Majesty, in conjunction with the lords and commons
of Great Britain, has, by a late act of Parliament, excluded the inhabitants of
these united colonies from the protection of his Crown; and whereas no answers
whatever to the humble petition of the colonies for redress of grievances end
reconciliation with Great Britain has been, or is likely to be, given, but the
whole force of that kingdom, aided by foreign mercenaries, is to be exerted for
the destruction of the good people of these colonies; and whereas it appears
absolutely irreconcilable to reason and good conscience for the people of these
colonies now to take the oaths and affirmations necessary for the support of any
government under the Crown of Great Britain, and it is necessary that the
exercise of every kind of authority under the said Crown should be totally
suppressed, and all the popovers of government exerted under the authority of
the people of the colonies for the preservation of internal peace, virtue, and
good order, as well as for the defense of our lives, liberties, and properties,
against the hostile invasions and cruel depredations of our enemies: Therefore,

" 'Resolved, That it be recommended to the respective assemblies and
conventions of the United colonies, where no government sufficient to the
exigencies of their affairs has been hitherto established, to adopt such
government as shall, in the opinion of the representatives of the people, best
conduce to the happiness and safety of their constituents in particular, and
America in general.'

"And whereas doubts have arisen whether this congress are invested with
sufficient power and authority to deliberate and determine on so important a
subject as the necessity of erecting and constituting a new form of government
and internal police, to the exclusion of all foreign jurisdiction, dominion, and
control whatever; and whereas it appertains of right solely to the people of
this colony to determine the said doubts: Therefore

"Resolved, That it be recommended to the electors in the several
counties in this colony, by election, in the manner and form prescribed for the
election of the present congress, either to authorize (in addition to the powers
vested in this congress) their present deputies, or others in the stead of their
present deputies, or either of them, to take into consideration the necessity
and propriety of instituting such new government as in and by the said
resolution of the Continental Congress is described and recommended; and if the
majority of the counties, by their deputies in provincial congress, shall be of
opinion that such new government ought to be instituted and established, then to
institute and establish such a government as they shall deem best calculated to
secure the rights, liberties, and happiness of the good people of this colony;
and to continue in force until a future peace w ith Great Britain shall render
the same unnecessary; and

"Resolved, That the said elections in the several counties ought to be
had on such day, and at such place or places, as by the committee of each county
respectively shall be determined. And it is recommended to the said committees
to fix such early days for the said elections as that all the deputies to be
elected have sufficient time to repair to the city of New York by the second
Monday in July next; on which day all the said deputies ought punctually to give
their attendance.

"And whereas the object of the Foregoing resolutions is of the utmost
importance to the good people of this colony:

"Resolved, That it be, and it is hereby, earnestly recommended to the
committees, freeholders, and other electors in the different counties in this
colony diligently to carry the same into execution."

And whereas the good people of the said colony, in pursuance of the said
resolution, and reposing special trust and confidence in the members of this
convention, have appointed, authorized, and empowered them for the purposes, and
in the manner, and with the powers in and by the said resolve specified,
declared, and mentioned.

And whereas the Delegates of the United American States, in general (Congress
convened, did, on the fourth day of July now last past, solemnly publish and
declare, in the words following; viz:

"When, in the course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to
dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to
assume among the powers of the earth the separate and equal station to which the
laws of nature and of nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the
opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel
them to the separation.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal;
that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that
among these are, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness; that to secure
these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers
from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government becomes
destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish
it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles,
and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to
edect their safety and happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that
governments long established should not be changed for light and transient
causes, and accordingly all experience hath shown that mankind are more disposed
to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing
the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and
usurpations; pursuing invariably the same object, evinces a design to reduce
them under absolute despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off
such government, and to provide new guards for their future security. Such has
been the patient sufferance of these colonies; and such is now the necessity
which constrains them to alter their former system of government. The history of
the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and
usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute
tyranny over these States. To prove this, let facts be submitted to a candid
world.

"He has refused his assent to laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the
public good.

"He has forbidden his governors to pass laws of immediate and pressing
importance, unless suspended in their operation till his assent should be
obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

"He has refused to pass other laws for the accommodation of large districts
of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of representation in
the legislature; a right inestimable to them, and formidable to tyrants only.

"He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable,
and distant from the depository of their public records, for the sole purpose of
fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

"He has dissolved representative houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly
firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

"He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to
be elected, whereby the legislative powers, incapable of annihilation, have
returned to the people at large, for their exercise; the State remaining in the
mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions
within.

"He has endeavored to prevent the population of these States; for that
purpose obstructing the laws for naturalization of foreigners, refusing to pass
others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new
appropriations of lands.

"He has obstructed the administration of justice, by refusing his assent to
laws for establishing judiciary powers.

"He has made judges dependent on his will alone, for the tenure of their
offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

"He has erected a multitude of new offices, and sent hither swarms of
officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

"He has kept among us, in times of peace, standing armies, without the
consent of our legislatures.

"He has affected to render the military independent of, and superior to, the
civil power.

"He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our
constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his assent to their acts of
pretended legislation:

"For quartering large bodies of troops among us:

"For protecting them, by a mock trial, from punishment for any murders they
should commit on the inhabitants of these States:

"For cutting off our trade with all parts of the world:

"For imposing taxes on us without our consent:

"For depriving us, in many cases, of the benefits of trial by jury:

"For transporting us beyond seas, to be tried for pretended offences:

"For abolishing the free system of English laws in a neighboring province,
establishing therein an arbitrary government, and enlargiIlg itS boundaries, so
as to render it at once an example and fit instrumellt for introducing the same
absolute rule into these colonies:

"He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to
complete the work of death, desolation, and tyranny, already lies on with
circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous
ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation.

"He has constrained our fellow-citizens, taken captive on the high seas, to
bear arms against their country, to become the executioners of their friends and
brethren, or to fall themselves by their Lands.

"He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavored to
bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers the merciless Indian savages, whose
known rule of warfare is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and
conditions.

"In every stage of these oppressions, we have petitioned for redress m the
most humble terms. Our repeated petitions have been answered only by repeated
injury. A prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a
tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have we been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have
warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an
unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances
of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice
and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to
disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connection and
correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of
consanguinity. We must therefore acquiesce in the necessity which denounces our
separation, and hold them as we hold the rest of mankind, enemies in war; in
peace, friends.

"We therefore, the Representatives of the United States of America, in
general Congress assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the
rectitude of our intentions, do, in the name and by the authority of the good
people of these colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united
colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States; that they
are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political
connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be,
totally dissolved; and that as free and independent States they have full power
to levy war, conclude peace, contract alliances, establish commerce, and to do
all other acts and things which independent States may of right do. And for the
support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine
Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our
sacred honor."

And whereas this convention, having taken this declaration into their most
serious consideration, did, on the ninth day of July last past, unanimously
resolve that the reasons assigned by the Continental Congress for declaring the
united colonies free and independent States are cogent and conclusive; and that
while we lament the cruel necessity which has rendered that measure unavoidable,
we approve the same, and will, at the risk of our lives and fortunes, join with
the other colonies in supporting it

By virtue of which several acts, declarations, and proceedings mentioned and
contained in the afore-cited resolves or resolutions of the general Congress of
the United American States, and of the congresses or conventions of this State,
all power whatever therein hath reverted to the people thereof, and this
convention hath by their suffrages and free choice been appointed, and among
other things authorized to institute and establish such a government as they
shall deem best calculated to secure the rights and liberties of the good people
of this State, most conducive of the happiness and safety of their constituents
in particular, and of America in general.

I. This convention, therefore, in the name and by the authority of the good
people of this State, doth ordain, determine, and declare that no authority
shall, on any presence whatever, be exercised over the people or members of this
State but such as shall be derived from and granted by them.

II. This convention doth further, in the name and by the authority of the
good people of this State, ordain, determine, and declare that the supreme
legislative power within this State shall be vested in two separate and distinct
bodies of men; the one to be called the assembly of the State of New York, the
other to be called the senate of the State of New York; who together shall form
the legislature, and meet once at least in every year for the despatch of
business.

III. And whereas laws inconsistent with the spirit of this constitution, or
with the public good, may be hastily and unadvisedly passed: Be it ordained,
that the governor for the time being, the chancellor, and the judges of the
supreme court, or any two of them, together with the governor, shall be, and
hereby are, constituted a council to revise all bills about to be passed into
laws by the legislature; and for that purpose shall assemble themselves from
time to time, when the legislature shall be convened; for which, nevertheless
they shall not receive any salary or consideration, under any presence whatever.
And that all bills which have passed the senate and assembly shall, before they
become laws, be presented to the said council for their revisal and
consideration; and if, upon such revision and consideration, it should appear
improper to the said council, or a majority of them, that the said bill should
become a law of this State, that they return the same, together with their
objections thereto in writing, to the senate or house of assembly (in which
soever the same shall have originated) who shall enter the objection sent down
by the council at large in their minutes, and proceed to reconsider the said
bill. But if, after such reconsideration, two-thirds of the said senate or house
of assembly shall, notwithstanding the said objections, agree to pass the same,
it shall together with the objections, be sent to the other branch of the
legislature, where it shall also be reconsidered, and, if approved by two-thirds
of the members present, shall be a law.

And in order to prevent any unnecessary delays, be it further ordained, that
if any bill shall not be returned by the council within ten days after it shall
have been presented, the same shall be a law, unless the legislature shall, by
their adjournment, render a return of the said bill within ten days
impracticable; in which case the bill shall be returned on the first day of the
meeting of the legislature after the expiration of the said ten days.

IV. That the assembly shall consist of at least seventy members, to be
annually chosen in the several counties, in the proportions following, viz:

For the city and county of New York, nine.
The city and county of
Albany, ten.
The county of Dutchess, seven.
The county of Westchester,
six.
The county of Ulster, six.
The county of Suffolk, five.
The county
of Queens, four.
The county of Orange, four.
The county of Kings,
two.
The county of Richmond, two.
Tryon County,(2) six.
Charlotte County,(3)
four.
Cumberland County,(4) three.
Gloucester
County,(5) two.

V. That as soon after the expiration of seven years (subsequent to the
termination of the present war) as may be a census of the electors and
inhabitants in this State be taken, under the direction of the legislature.(6) And if, on such census, it shall appear that the
number of representatives in assembly from the said counties is not justly
proportioned to the number of electors in the said counties respectively, that
the legislature do adjust and apportion the same by that rule. And further, that
once in ever seven years, after the taking of the said first census, a just
account of the electors resident in each county shall be taken, and if it shall
thereupon appear that the member of electors in any county shall have increased
or diminished one or more seventieth parts of the whole number of electors,
which, on the said first census, shall be found in this State, the number of
representatives for such county shall be increased or diminished accordingly,
that is to say, fine representative for every seventieth part as aforesaid. (7)

VI. And whereas an opinion hath long prevailed among divers of the good
people of this State that voting at elections by ballot would tend more to
preserve the liberty and equal freedom of the people than voting viva
voce: To the end, therefore, that a fair experiment be made, which of those
two methods of voting is to be preferred --

Be it ordained, That as soon as may be after the termination of the
present war between the United States of America and Great Britain, an act or
acts be passed by the legislature of this State for causing all elections
thereafter to be held in this State for senators and representatives in assembly
to be by ballot, and directing the manner in which the same shall be
conducted.(8) And whereas it is possible that, after
all the care of the legislature in framing the said act or acts, certain
inconveniences and mischiefs, unforseen at this day, may be found to attend the
said mode of electing by ballot:

It is further ordained, That if, after a full and fair experiment
shall be made of voting by ballot aforesaid, the same shall be found less
conducive to the safety or interest of the State than the method of voting
viva voce, it shall be lawful and constitutional for the legislature to
abolish the same, provided two-thirds of the members present in each house,
respectively, shall concur therein. And further, that, during the continuance of
the present war, and until the legislature of this State shall provide for the
election of senators and representatives in assembly by ballot, the said
election shall be made viva voce.

VII. That every male inhabitant of full age, who shall have personally
resided within one of the counties of this State for six months immediately
preceding the day of election, shall, at such election, be entitled to vote for
representatives of the said county in assembly; if, during the time aforesaid,
he shall have been a freeholder, possessing a freehold of the value of twenty
pounds, within the said county, or have rented a tenement therein of the yearly
value of forty shillings, and been rated and actually paid taxes to this State:
Provided always, That every person who now is a freeman of the city of
Albany, or who was made a freeman of the city of New York on or before the
fourteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred
and seventy-five, and shall be actually and usually resident in the said cities,
respectively, shall be entitled to vote for representatives in assembly within
his said place of residence.

VIII. That every elector, before he is admitted to vote, shall, if required
by the returning-officer or either of the inspectors, take an oath, or, if of
the people called Quakers, an affirmation, of allegiance to the State.

IX. That the assembly, thus constituted, shall choose their own speaker, be
judges of their own members, and enjoy the same privileges, and proceed in doing
business in like manner as the assemblies of the colony of New York of right
formerly did; and that a majority of the said members shall, from time to time,
constitute a house, to proceed upon business.

X. And this convention doth further, in the name and by the authority of the
good people of this State, ordain, determine, and declare, that the senate of
the State of New York shall consist of twenty-four freeholders to be chosen out
of the body of the freeholders; and that they be chosen by the freeholders of
this State, possessed of freeholds of the value of one hundred pounds, over and
above all debts charged thereon.

XI. That the members of the senate be elected for four years; and,
immediately after the first election, they be divided by lot into four classes,
six in each class, and numbered one, two, three, and four; that the seats of the
members of the first class shall be vacated at the expiration of the first year,
the second class the second year, and so on continually; to the end that the
fourth part of the senate, as nearly as possible, may be annually chosen.

XII. That the election of senators shall be after this manner: That so much
of this State as is now parcelled into counties be divided into four great
districts; the southern district to comprehend the city and county of New York,
Suffolk, Westchester, Kings, Queens, and Richmond Counties; the middle district
to comprehend the counties of Dutchess, Ulster, and Orange; the western
district, the city and county of Albany, and Tryon County; and the eastern
district, the counties of Charlotte, Cumberland, and Gloucester. That the
senators shall be elected by the freeholders of the said districts, qualified as
aforesaid, in the proportions following, to wit: in the southern district, nine;
in the middle district, six; in the western district, six; and in the eastern
district, three. And be it ordained, that a census shall be taken, as soon as
may be after the expiration of seven years from the termination of the present
war, under the direction of the legislature; and if, on such census, it shall
appear that the number of senators is not justly proportioned to the several
districts, that the legislature adjust the proportion, as near as may be, to the
number of freeholders, qualified as aforesaid, in each district.(9) That when the number of electors, within any of the said
districts, shall have increased one twenty-fourth part of the whole number of
electors, which. by the said census, shall be found to be in this State, an
additional senator shall be chosen by the electors of such district. That a
majority of the number of senators to be chosen aforesaid shall be necessary to
constitute a senate sufficient to proceed upon business; and that the senate
shall, in like manner with the assembly, be the judges of its own members. And
be it ordained, that it shall be in the power of the future legislatures of this
State, for the convenience and advantage of the good people thereof, to divide
the same into such further and other counties and districts as shall to them
appear necessary.

XIII. And this convention doth further, in the name and by the authority of
the good people of this State, ordain, determine, and declare, that no member of
this State shall be disfranchised, or deprived of any the rights or privileges
secured to the subjects of this State by this constitution, unless by the law of
the land, or the judgment of his peers.

XIV. That neither the assembly or the senate shall have the power to adjourn
themselves, for any longer time than two days, without the mutual consent of
both.

XV. That whenever the assembly and senate disagree, a conference shall be
held, in the preference of both, and be managed by committees, to be by them
respectively chosen by ballot. That the doors, both of the senate and assembly,
shall at all times be kept open to all persons, except when the welfare of the
State shall require their debates to be kept secret. And the journals of all
their proceedings shall be kept in the manner heretofore accustomed by the
general assembly of the colony of New York; and except such parts as they shall,
as aforesaid, respectively determine not to make public be from day to day (if
the business of the legislature will permit) published.

XVI. It is nevertheless provided, that the number of senators shall never
exceed one hundred, nor the number of the assembly three hundred; but that
whenever the number of senators shall amount to one hundred, or of the assembly
to three hundred, then and in such case the legislature shall, from time to time
thereafter, by laws for that purpose, apportion and distribute the said one
hundred senators and three hundred representatives among the great districts and
counties of this State, in proportion to the number of their respective
electors; so that the representation of the good people of this State, both in
the senate and assembly, shall forever remain proportionate and adequate.(10)

XVII. And this convention doth further, in the name and by the authority of
the good people of this State, ordain, determine, and declare that the supreme
executive power and authority of this State shall be vested in a governor; and
that statedly, once in every three years, and as often as the seat of government
shall become vacant, a wise and descreet freeholder of this State shall be, by
ballot, elected governor, by the freeholders of this State, qualified, as before
described, to elect senators; which elections shall be always held at the times
and places of choosing representatives in assembly for each respective county;
and that the person who hath the greatest number of votes within the said State
shall be governor thereof.

XVIII. That the governor shall continue in office three years, and shall, by
virtue of his office, be general and commander-in-chief of all the militia, and
admiral of the navy of this State; that he shall have power to convene the
assembly and senate on extraordinary occasions; to prorogue them from time to
time, provided such prorogations shall not exceed sixty days in the space of any
one year; and, at his discretion, to grant reprieves and pardons to persons
convicted of crimes, other than treason or murder, in which he may suspend the
execution of the sentence, until it shall be reported to the legislature at
their subsequent meeting; and they shall either pardon or direct the execution
of the criminal, or grant a further reprieve.

XIX. That it shall be the duty of the governor to inform the legislature, at
every session, of the condition of the State, so far as may respect his
department; to recommend such matters to their consideration as shall appear to
him to concern its good government, welfare, and prosperity; to correspond with
the Continental Congress, and other States; to transact all necessary business
with the officers of government, civil and military; to take care that the laws
are faithfully executed to the best of his ability; and to expedite all such
measures as may be resolved upon by the legislature.

XX. That a lieutenant-governor shall, at every election of a governor, and as
often as the lieutenant-governor shall die, resign, or be removed from office,
be elected in the same manner with the governor, to continue in office until the
next election of a governor; and such lieutenant-governor shall, by virtue of
his office, be president of the senate, and, upon an equal division, have a
casting voice in their decisions, but not vote on any other occasion. And in
case of the impeachment of the governor, or his removal from office, death,
resignation, or absence from the State, the lieutenant-governor shall exercise
all the power and authority appertaining to the office of governor until another
be chosen, or the governor absent or impeached shall return or lie acquitted:
Provided, That where the governor shall, with the consent of the
legislature, be out of the State, in time of war, at the head of a military
force thereof, he shall still continue in his command of all the military force
of this State both by sea and land.

XXI. That whenever the government shall be administered by the
lieutenant-governor, or he shall be unable to attend as president of the senate,
the senators shall have power to elect one of their own members to the office of
president of the senate, which he shall exercise pro hac vice. And if,
during such vacancy of the office of governor, the lieutenant-governor shall be
impeached, displaced, resign, die, or be absent from the State, the president of
the senate shall, in like manner as the lieutenant-governor, administer the
government, until others shall be elected by the suffrage of the people, at the
succeeding election.

XXII. And this convention doth further, in the name and by the authority of
the good people of this State, ordain, determine, and declare, that the
treasurer of this State shall be appointed by act of the legislature, to
originate with the assembly: Provided, that he shall not be elected out
of either branch of the legislature.

XXIII. That all officers, other than those who, by this constitution, are
directed to be otherwise appointed, shall be appointed in the manner following,
to wit: The assembly shall, once in every year, openly nominate and appoint one
of the senators from each great district, which senators shall form a council
for the appointment of the said officers, of which the governor for the time
being, or the lieutenantgovernor, or the president of the senate, when they
shall respectively administer the government, shall be president and have a
casting voice, but no other vote; and with the advice and consent of the said
council, shall appoint all the said officers; and that a majority of the said
council be a quorum.(11) And further, the said
senators shall not be eligible to the said council for two years successively.

XXIV. That all military officers be appointed during pleasure; that all
commissioned officers, civil and military, be commissioned by the governor; and
that the chancellor, the judges of the supreme court, and first judge of the
county court in every county, hold their offices during good behavior or until
they shall have respectively attained the age of sixty years.

XXV. That the chancellor and judges of the supreme court shall not, at the
same time, hold any other office, excepting that of Delegate to the general
Congress, upon special occasions; and that the first Judges of the county
courts, in the several counties, shall not, at the same time, hold any other
office, excepting that of Senator or Delegate to the general Congress. But if
the chancellor, or either of the said judges, be elected or appointed to any
other office, excepting as is before excepted, it shall be at his option in
which to serve.

XXVI. That sheriffs and coroners be annually appointed; and that no person
shall be capable of holding either of the said offices more than four years
successively; nor the sheriff of holding any other office at the same time.

XXVII. And be it further ordained, That the register and clerks in
chancery be appointed by the chancellor; the clerks of the supreme court, by the
judges of the said court; the clerk of the court of probate, by the judge of the
said court; and the register and marshal of the court of admiralty, by the judge
of the admiralty. The said marshal, registers, and clerks to continue in office
during the pleasure of those by whom they are appointed as aforesaid.

And that all attorneys, solicitors, and counsellors at law hereafter to be
appointed, be appointed by the court, and licensed by the first judge of the
court in which they shall respectively plead or practise, and be regulated by
the rules and orders of the said courts.

XXVIII. And be it further ordained, That where, by this convention,
the duration of any office shall not be ascertained, such office shall be
construed to be held during the pleasure of the council of appointment:
Provided, That new commissions shall be issued to judges of the county
courts (other than to the first judge) and to justices of the peace, once at the
least in every three years.

XXIX. That town clerks, supervisors, assessors, constables, and collectors,
and all other officers, heretofore eligible by the people, shall always continue
to be so eligible, in the manner directed by the present or future acts of
legislature.

That loan officers, county treasurers, and clerks of the supervisors,
continue to be appointed in the manner directed by the present or future acts of
the legislature.

XXX. That Delegates to represent this State in the general Congress of the
United States of America be annually appointed as follows, to wit: The senate
and assembly shall each openly nominate as many persons as shall be equal to the
whole number of Delegates to be appointed; after which nomination they shall
meet together, and those persons named in both lists shall be Delegates; and out
of those persons whose names are not on both lists, one-half shall be chosen by
the joint ballot of the senators and members of assembly so met~togetheras
aforesaid.

XXXI. That the style of all laws shall be as follows, to wit: "Be it
enacted by the people of the State of New York, represented in senate and
assembly;" and that all writs and other proceedings shall run in the name of
"The people of the State of New York," and be tested in the name of the
chancellor, or chief judge of the court from whence they shall issue.

XXXII. And this convention doth further, in the name and by the authority of
the good people of this State, ordain, determine, and declare, that a court
shall be instituted for the trial of impeachments, and the correction of errors,
under the regulations which shall be established by the legislature; and to
consist of the president of the senate, for the time being, and the senators,
chancellor, and judges of the supreme court, or the major part of them; except
that when an impeachment shall be prosecuted against the chancellor, or either
of the judges of the supreme court, the person so impeached shall be suspended
from exercising his office until his acquittal; and, in like manner, when an
appeal from a decree in equity shall be heard, the chancellor shall inform the
court of the reasons of his decree, but shall not have a voice in the final
sentence. And if the cause to be determined shall be brought up by writ of
error, on a question of law, on a judgment in the supreme court, the judges of
that court shall assign the reasons of such their judgment, but shall not have a
voice for its affirmance or reversal.

XXXIII. That the power of impeaching all officers of the State, for mal and
corrupt conduct in their respective offices, be vested in the representatives of
the people in assembly; but that it shall always be necessary that two third
parts of the members present shall consent to and agree in such impeachment.
That previous to the trial of every impeachment, the members of the said court
shall respectively be sworn truly and impartially to try and determine the
charge in question, according to evidence; and that no judgment of the said
court shall be valid unless it be assented to by two third parts of the members
then present; nor shall it extend farther than to removal from office, and
disqualification to hold or enjoy any place of honor, trust, or profit under
this State. But the party so convicted shall be, nevertheless, liable and
subject to indictment, trial, judgment, and punishment, according to the laws of
the land.

XXXIV. And it is further ordained, That in every trial on impeachment,
or indictment for crimes or misdemeanors, the party impeached or indicted shall
be allowed counsel, as in civil actions.

XXXV. And this convention doth further, in the name and by the authority of
the good people of this State, ordain, determine, and declare that such parts of
the common law of England, and of the statute law of England and Great Britain,
and of the acts of the legislature of the colony of New York, as together did
form the law of the said colony on the 19th day of April, in the year of our
Lord one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five, shall be and continue the law
of this State, subject to such alterations and provisions as the legislature of
this State shall, from time to time, make concerning the same. That such of the
said acts, as are temporary, shall expire at the times limited for their
duration, respectively. That all such parts of the said common law, and all such
of the said statutes and acts aforesaid, or parts thereof, as may be construed
to establish or maintain any particular denomination of Christians or their
ministers, or concern the allegiance heretofore yielded to, and the supremacy,
sovereignty, government, or prerogatives claimed or exercised by, the King of
Great Britain and his predecessors, over the colony of New York and its
inhabitants, or are repugnant to this constitution, be, and they hereby are,
abrogated and rejected. And this convention doth further ordain, that the
resolves or resolutions of the congresses of the colony of New York, and of the
convention of the State of New York, now in force, and not repugnant to the
government established by this constitution, shall be considered as making part
of the laws of this State; subject, nevertheless, to such alterations and
provisions as the legislature of this State may, from time to time, make
concerning the same.

XXXVI. And be it further ordained, That all grants of lands within
this State, made by the King of Great Britain, or persons acting under his
authority, after the fourteenth day of October, one thousand seven hundred and
seventy-five, shall be null and void; but that nothing in this constitution
contained shall be construed to affect any grants of land within this State,
made by the authority of the said King or his predecessors, or to annul any
charters to bodies-politic by him or them, or any of them, made prior to that
day. And that none of the said charters shall be adjudged to be void by reason
of any non-user or misuser of any of their respective rights or privileges
between the nineteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven
hundred and seventy-five and the publication of this constitution. And further,
that all such of the officers described in the said charters respectively as, by
the terms of the said charters, were to be appointed by the governor of the
colony of New York, with or without the advice and consent of the council of the
said King, in the said colony, shall henceforth be appointed by the council
established by this constitution for the appointment of officers in this State,
until otherwise directed by the legislature.

XXXVII. And whereas it is of great importance to the safety of this State
that peace and amity with the Indians within the same be at all times supported
and maintained; and whereas the frauds too often practiced towards the said
Indians, in contracts made for their lands, have, in divers instances, been
productive of dangerous discontents and animosities: Be it ordained, that no
purchases or contracts for the sale of lands, made since the fourteenth day of
October, in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five, or
which may hereafter be made with or of the said Indians, within the limits of
this State, shall be binding on the said Indians, or deemed valid, unless made
under the authority and with the consent of the legislature of this State.

XXXVIII. And whereas we are required, by the benevolent principles of
rational liberty, not only to expel civil tyranny, but also to guard against
that spiritual oppression and intolerance wherewith the bigotry and ambition of
weak and wicked priests and princes have scourged mankind, this convention doth
further, in the name and by the authority of the good people of this State,
ordain, determine, and declare, that the free exercise and enjoyment of
religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference, shall
forever hereafter be allowed, within this State, to all mankind:
Provided, That the liberty of conscience, hereby granted, shall not be so
construed as to excuse acts of licentiousness, or justify practices inconsistent
with the peace or safety of this State.

XXXIX. And whereas the ministers of the gospel are, by their profession,
dedicated to the service of God and the care of souls, and ought not to be
diverted from the great duties of their function; therefore, no minister of the
gospel, or priest of any denomination whatsoever, shall, at any time hereafter,
under any presence or description whatever, be eligible to, or capable of
holding, any civil or military office or place within this State.

XL. And whereas it is of the utmost importance to the safety of every State
that it should always be in a condition of defence; and it is the duty of every
man who enjoys the protection of society to be prepared and willing to defend
it; this convention therefore, in the name and by the authority of the good
people of this State, doth ordain, determine, and declare that the militia of
this State, at all times hereafter, as well in peace as in war, shall be armed
and disciplined, and in readiness for service. That all such of the inhabitants
of this State being of the people called Quakers as, from scruples of
conscience, may be averse to the bearing of arms, be therefrom excused by the
legislature; and do pay to the State such sums of money, in lieu of their
personal service, as the same; may, in the judgment of the legislature, be
worth.(12) And that a proper magazine of warlike
stores, proportionate to the number of inhabitants, be, forever hereafter, at
the expense of this State, and by acts of the legislature, established,
maintained, and continued in every county in this State.

XLI. And this convention doth further ordain, determine, and declare, in the
name and by the authority of the good people of this State, that trial by jury,
in all cases in which it hath heretofore been used in the colony of New York,
shall be established and remain inviolate forever. And that no acts of attainder
shall be passed by the legislature of this State for crimes, other than those
committed before the termination of the present war; and that such acts shall
not work a corruption of blood.(13) And further, that
the legislature of this State shall, at no time hereafter, institute any new
court or courts, but such as shall proceed according to the course of the common
law.

XLII. And this convention doth further, in the name and by the authority of
the good people of this State, ordain, determine, and declare that it shall be
in the discretion of the legislature to naturalize all such persons, and in such
manner, as they shall think proper: Provided, All such of the persons so
to be by them naturalized, as being born in parts beyond sea, and out of the
United States of America, shall come to settle in and become subjects of this
State, shall take an oath of allegiance to this State, and abjure and renounce
all allegiance and subjection to all and every foreign king, prince, potentate,
and State in all matters, ecclesiastical as well as civil.(14)

By order.

LEONARD GANSEVOORT,President pro tempore.

1 Verified from "Journals of the Provincial Congress,
Provincial Convention Committee of Safety and Council of Safety of the State of
New York, 1775, 1776 1777, vol. I. Albany: Printed by Thurlow Weed, printer to
the State 1842." pp. 892-898.

The Dutch, who began in 1613 to establish trading-posts on the Hudson River
claimed jurisdiction over the territory between the Connecticut and the Delaware
Rivers, which they called New Netherlands. The government was vested in "The
United New Netherland Company," chartered in 1616, and then in "The Dutch West
India Company," chartered in 1621.

In 1649 a convention of the settlers petitioned the "Lords States-General of
the United Netherlands" to grant them "suitable burgher government," such as
their High Mightinesses shall consider adapted to this province, and resembling
somewhat the government of our Fatherland," with certain permanent privileges
and exemptions, that they might pursue "the trade of our country, as well along
the coast from Terra Nova to Cape Florida as to the West Indies and Europe,
whenever our Lord God shall be pleased to permit."

The directors of the West India Company resented this attempt to shake off
their rule, and wrote their director and council at New Amsterdam: "We have
already connived as much as possible at the many impertinences of some restless
spirits, in the hope that they might be shamed by our discreetness and
benevolence, but, perceiving that all kindnesses do not avail, we must,
therefore, have recourse to God to Nature and the Law. We accordingly hereby
charge and command your Honors whenever you shall certainly discover any
Clandestine Meetings, Conventicles or machinations against our States government
or that of our country that you proceed against such malignants in proportion to
their crimes."

These grants embraced all the lands between the w est bank of the Connecticut
River and the east bank of Delaware say. The Duke of York had previously
purchased in 1663 the grant of Long Island and other islands on the New E:ngland
coast made in 1635 to the Marl of Stirling, and in 1664 he equipped an armed
expedition which tool possession of New Amsterdam which was thenceforth called
New York. This conquest was confirmed by the treaty of Credo, in July 1667. In
July 1673 a Dutch fleet recaptured New York and held it until it was restored to
the E:nglish by the treaty of Westminster in February, 1674. The second grant
was obtained by the Duke of York in July, 1674 to perfect his title. The
original grants are in the New York state Library.

This constitution was framed by a convention which assembled at White Plains
July 10, 1776, and after repeated adjournments and changes of location
terminated its labors at Kingston Sunday evening April 20 1777, when the
constitution was adopted with but one dissenting vote. It was not submitted to
the people for ratification. It was drafted by John Jay. Back

2 The whole number of bills passed by the legislature under
this constitution was six thousand five hundred and ninety. The council of
revision objected to one hundred and twenty-eight, of which seventeen were
passed notwithstanding these objections. -- Hough. Back

8 The first act under this clause was passed March 27, 1778,
and introduced the practice of voting by ballot for governor and
lieutenant-governor only, but retained the viva voce method for senators and
assemblymen. By an act of February 13, 1787, the mode of voting by ballot for
the latter was introduced. The boxes containing the ballots for governor,
lieutenant-governor, and senators were returned by the sheriffs to the secretary
of state, to be canvassed by a joint committee of the legislature, until March
27, 1799, when the system of inspection and canvassing by local wards was
introduced. -- Hough. Back

9 Under this clause, a new arrangement of senatorial districts
was made February 7, 1791; March 4, 1796; and April 17, 1815. -- Hough.
Back

12 This exemption-fee was fixed at Â£10 per annum by the act
of April 3, 1778 organizing the militia of the State. -- Hough. Back

13 By an act of October 23,1779, fifty-eight persons, of whom
three were females were attainted and banished from the State for adherence to
the enemy. This is the only act passed under the above clause. -- Hough.
Back

14 The custom of naturalizing aliens by special act was first
introduced by the colonial general assembly in 1717, and was continued by the
State legislature until the adoption of the Federal Constitution in 1789. After
that date the right to hold land upon declaring an intention to become
naturalized was granted by special act until 1825, when a general law for this
purpose was passed. -- Hough. Back

Source:The Federal and State Constitutions Colonial
Charters, and Other Organic Laws of the States, Territories, and Colonies Now or
Heretofore Forming the United States of AmericaCompiled and Edited Under the
Act of Congress of June 30, 1906 by Francis Newton ThorpeWashington, DC :
Government Printing Office, 1909.